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Scott made it very clear that changes to the roadmap were made when the annual SKU count increased. The Star Sisters were each supposed to be monthly releases. As for Stonedar and Rokkon, they are like Sorceress to me. I can visibly see how the Four Horsemen had it figured out, Design poorly translated, I will be disappointed now, BUT when I pick them up at the show. I will open them up immediately and enjoy them for what they are.

2103 by and large was good so far. Shame the comic con exclusive (the one with its own budget) came up short.

Someone mentioned that Granita wasn't part of the roadmap and someone suggested that Granita fans would have been upset with being saddled buying Stonedar and Rokkon JUST to get Granita. Is that even a plausible scenario? Lol

This picture at the side of the box does show the prototype in rock form!

The actual figure's sculpt got altered, but that does not take away the fact that the prototype always had the chunck of rock to be added and the proportions are more or less 1:1 between prototype and final figure!

The actual figure's sculpt got altered, but that does not take away the fact that the prototype always had the chunck of rock to be added and the proportions are more or less 1:1 between prototype and final figure!

Uh, I think they are not 1:1. Lets take a look.
This picture would show the production figure has even LARGER arm pieces if the figure was rotated around all the way.
This is the best we can see in Figure mode untill we get a shot of the production figure in a pose like the prototype (I think that will be the most damning) but it looks pretty bad here, to be fair, we have not seen the correct angle yet. Looks no where near 1:1 to me though. We shall see when we have more pictures. Hopefully Everyone will be happy with what we get. I can just hear that voice "These are your Comet warriors people!"

Also, I haven't mentioned this before, but using the knee and elbow pin holes as anchors for the clips seems like a good Idea structurally, but it makes the rock pieces look worse and puts them in the wrong spots. Hopefully you can clip these higher on the arms without breaking them. The knee clips will be the worst, since they appear to rotate the rocks toward the back of the leg instead of along the side like on the prototype and the original toy.

I already wrote this in this thread but as darkmoon766 posts more pics I just feel I want to repeat that I agree - the figures look way better in the card-back picture. The rock armor parts are smaller and fit the figures better. The solution of the clips is better too as the clips form the bands.

Since the figures are packaged and the design will not be changed I just hope we will see the original prototype rock armor pieces with band-like clips in a weapons pack somehow. Then everyone can choose and decide which ones to use and everyone will be happy.

Uh, I think they are not 1:1. Lets take a look.http://img29.imageshack.us/img29/3489/rocksh.jpg
This picture would show the production figure has even LARGER arm pieces if the figure was rotated around all the way.http://img20.imageshack.us/img20/6733/standingw.jpg
This is the best we can see in Figure mode untill we get a shot of the production figure in a pose like the prototype (I think that will be the most damning) but it looks pretty bad here, to be fair, we have not seen the correct angle yet. Looks no where near 1:1 to me though. We shall see when we have more pictures. Hopefully Everyone will be happy with what we get. I can just hear that voice "These are your Comet warriors people!"

Also, I haven't mentioned this before, but using the knee and elbow pin holes as anchors for the clips seems like a good Idea structurally, but it makes the rock pieces look worse and puts them in the wrong spots. Hopefully you can clip these higher on the arms without breaking them. The knee clips will be the worst, since they appear to rotate the rocks toward the back of the leg instead of along the side like on the prototype and the original toy.

darkmoon766 don't get me wrong, please. I am totally with you on the issue itself. Just want to say that this time it is not that big of a deal for me and I am really nitpicky on this kind of stuff. I also would have liked a direct copy of the rock pieces of the prototype, of course. But what we get is something I can live with. The cut of newly sculpted legs though is beyond me. This is a SDCC and not a monthly usual release. TG/Mattel's promises of no cuts on accessories/deco if we pay more money and then doing exactly this (Castle Grayskull, Comet Warriors) really starts to get on my nerves. No personal offense against TG, but his false promises do no good to the line and makes Mattel less and less trustworthy. Himself as well. And the alternatives we will receive, pahhh....Mattel Design is on its best way to become my next most hated enemy directly after DR!

Again, there was no promise that every last item would cost out if they raised prices. The only reason the upper leg thing is a big issue is because a new piece was shown on the prototype. Mattel though they could afford it but they couldn't. The simplest way for Mattel to stop having things cut is to lower their own expectations. If they hadn't thought they could add the new leg pieces, they never would have made it. If they hadn't made it, there would be no pictures to come out to upset people like the legs, Rattlor's armor, and Draego Man's weapons. No pictures, no complaints of dropped items. Basically, to avoid themselves a lot of headache, they should just not sculpt things if they think there's even the slightest chance it won't cost out. Is that what we want?

Again, there was no promise that every last item would cost out if they raised prices. The only reason the upper leg thing is a big issue is because a new piece was shown on the prototype. Mattel though they could afford it but they couldn't. The simplest way for Mattel to stop having things cut is to lower their own expectations. If they hadn't thought they could add the new leg pieces, they never would have made it. If they hadn't made it, there would be no pictures to come out to upset people like the legs, Rattlor's armor, and Draego Man's weapons. No pictures, no complaints of dropped items. Basically, to avoid themselves a lot of headache, they should just not sculpt things if they think there's even the slightest chance it won't cost out. Is that what we want?

Common'. The Castle Grayskull stuff was NOT okay. They promised much much more than what we actually get for an even higher price. I looked at the pictures of CG yesterday and that the trap door just does not lead into the dungeon is ridiculous to say it in a nice way.

Mattel should have eaten the bullit an should have made these leg bands almost everybody that wants the Comet Warrior is missing now. It really is not like they "loose their shirts" on it as TG always claims. The profit margin would not have been as high as it is now, but Mattel should have made it as an investment in the property to show us that they really are going the distance! But they rather try to cheap out on us in every way they probably can!

Of course I am happy that we get the Classics at all and yes I believe that TG tries hard to make as much happen as possible, but the Mattel philosophy has faded long ago...they rather do the same thing as every large company in the world: making as much money as possible! There is nothing wrong in wanting to make money in general. But to give customers the feeling that there are more and more cuts although we pay more and leave customers with a bad taste in their mouths again and again is really bad customer service and bad for the property in general and bad for the releases in the future!

Common'. The Castle Grayskull stuff was NOT okay. They promised much much more than what we actually get for an even higher price. I looked at the pictures of CG yesterday and that the trap door just does not lead into the dungeon is ridiculous to say it in a nice way.

Mattel should have eaten the bullit an should have made these leg bands almost everybody that wants the Comet Warrior is missing now. It really is not like they "loose their shirts" on it as TG always claims. The profit margin would not have been as high as it is now, but Mattel should have made it as an investment in the property to show us that they really are going the distance! But they rather try to cheap out on us in every way they probably can!

Of course I am happy that we get the Classics at all and yes I believe that TG tries hard to make as much happen as possible, but the Mattel philosophy has faded long ago...they rather do the same thing as every large company in the world: making as much money as possible! There is nothing wrong in wanting to make money in general. But to give customers the feeling that there are more and more cuts although we pay more and leave customers with a bad taste in their mouths again and again is really bad customer service and bad for the property in general and bad for the releases in the future!

Better pray, that Mantenna will get his unique body parts

There is always room for improvement, if the rock pieces would be as large as the 4HM had sculpted them, the additional rock piece had to be larger. I think many, will pose them without the bulky pieces. New upper legs would make this figures better, maybe there is a way to make them like the Horde armbands.

darkmoon766 don't get me wrong, please. I am totally with you on the issue itself...

It's cool.
I just wanted to make sure no one was confused about the proto-production differences.

Originally Posted by Berserker79

...There is always room for improvement, if the rock pieces would be as large as the 4HM had sculpted them, the additional rock piece had to be larger. I think many, will pose them without the bulky pieces. New upper legs would make this figures better, maybe there is a way to make them like the Horde armbands.

Then why isn't that what they did? Who would have cared if the extra rock piece was larger or looked weird? It only really has one function, the arm pieces are supposed to look close as possible to vintage, 4-horsemen design, and ARMS, not a giant clam. I'm sure there were challenges converting them from proto to toy, but I think it could have been better. I would have erred on the side of man form vs rock, but it seems they chose a really nice rock form and a goofy man form. The rock forms do look great though.

Well, let me start by saying I really like the figures, themselves. I think they look great and have excellent paint jobs. Even though they reuse Trapjaw and Roboto parts, I think they are executed in a way that works with that paint deco. Things that they missed:

1) I know they said they couldn't tool new legs, but was it ever considered that new "techno" legs would add to the possibilities for future figures, like Blast Attak or any of the NA characters? That might have helped raise the budget if the forethought was there to reuse them later on.

2) The leg band clips were obviously there on the proto as the means to attach the rock armor. The Design/Engineer team should have communicated better with the 4H regarding them, before completely redesigning the attachments in a way that not only looses this clever idea, but also takes away from the look and articulation of the figure while wearing the armor.

3) The rock armor pieces are larger. I am not sure why this was done. I do not know if it was done to be able to have the figures assume the "rock form" or not. I am not aware if the original prototype design was made to do the same or not. I do think the smaller pieces look better, but maybe then they couldn't become boulders. Personally, I would have been fine with that, since the "action feature" was something we said we wouldn't get if it interfered with the sculpt or articulation. Ooops.

Communication with the engineering team (Reuben) needs to improve. They are continually changing things that were better the first time. It tells me that the decisions they make are not based on any existing knowledge of the characters or brand, with regards to how they look. They just seem like decisions made by someone trying to put their stamp on a toy. "This was my idea, look what I came up with!" They need to understand that their changes are not appreciated by the costumers and they should really pay more attention to the way the 4H have designed the figure and the customers feedback. The 4H have a true respect for the franchise and characters within it, and it is reflected in the sculpting and initial designs of the figures. I feel the Engineers/Design team could have accomplished a look closer to the prototypes of the Comet Warriors than we will be receiving.

Well, let me start by saying I really like the figures, themselves. I think they look great and have excellent paint jobs. Even though they reuse Trapjaw and Roboto parts, I think they are executed in a way that works with that paint deco. Things that they missed:

1) I know they said they couldn't tool new legs, but was it ever considered that new "techno" legs would add to the possibilities for future figures, like Blast Attak or any of the NA characters? That might have helped raise the budget if the forethought was there to reuse them later on.

2) The leg band clips were obviously there on the proto as the means to attach the rock armor. The Design/Engineer team should have communicated better with the 4H regarding them, before completely redesigning the attachments in a way that not only looses this clever idea, but also takes away from the look and articulation of the figure while wearing the armor.

3) The rock armor pieces are larger. I am not sure why this was done. I do not know if it was done to be able to have the figures assume the "rock form" or not. I am not aware if the original prototype design was made to do the same or not. I do think the smaller pieces look better, but maybe then they couldn't become boulders. Personally, I would have been fine with that, since the "action feature" was something we said we wouldn't get if it interfered with the sculpt or articulation. Ooops.

Communication with the engineering team (Reuben) needs to improve. They are continually changing things that were better the first time. It tells me that the decisions they make are not based on any existing knowledge of the characters or brand, with regards to how they look. They just seem like decisions made by someone trying to put their stamp on a toy. "This was my idea, look what I came up with!" They need to understand that their changes are not appreciated by the costumers and they should really pay more attention to the way the 4H have designed the figure and the customers feedback. The 4H have a true respect for the franchise and characters within it, and it is reflected in the sculpting and initial designs of the figures. I feel the Engineers/Design team could have accomplished a look closer to the prototypes of the Comet Warriors than we will be receiving.

However, I still think they look great and I will be buying them.

Very nicely put. I'm glad you still think they look great, but if everyone had the same attitude, why would they want to make improvements if everyone just buys whatever they slap together? It seems like whenever there is a controversial reveal, the best outcome is when there is enough time to implement changes, like Snake Manatarms, and the faceless one, etc. Times like this, by the time there was a reveal, the figures are likely almost ready to be shipped, and there is nothing to be done. At least it doesn't look like the arms are switched....need to look closer at the shoulders....

Glad to be getting these guys. Not a bad choice for SDCC, IMO. Glad there is no packaging variation. I think holding off on Granita for now was the right call, too.

I disagree with the decision to do the action feature, though. I think the design suffered greatly from this. Also would have liked to see a handle on the side of the guns instead of on the bottom.

Originally Posted by Fearless Arriflex

I really really need to see better pictures of these, but my impression as a die-hard-Stonedar-fan is that his MOTUC counterpart couldcome off as a slight disappointment. I could ignore the oversized, bulky,goofy rock pieces, but I'm really hardbroken the 4Horsemen didn't attempt to classicize Stonedar's unique and beautiful vintage head sculpt.

I completely agree. Stonedar's face sculpt looks nothing like the serene face of the vintage toy to me. I am really surprised that this has not been more of a point of contention.

Originally Posted by King Tamusk

1) I know they said they couldn't tool new legs, but was it ever considered that new "techno" legs would add to the possibilities for future figures, like Blast Attak or any of the NA characters? That might have helped raise the budget if the forethought was there to reuse them later on.

Yeah, I was wondering about this, too. It feels like poor planning or at least an indication that this set was bumped up in the roadmap.

The legs look ridiculous to me. Part sharing is one of my favorite aspects of MOTUC, but sometimes it looks as though Mattel is not even trying. And after all these years they still have glaring holes in their part library.

Mattel really needs to look ahead to the remaining characters and commit to at least one new set of "high-tech" legs that could add some mix & match variety to the Trap Jaw legs.

Originally Posted by King Tamusk

Communication with the engineering team (Reuben) needs to improve.

You might be too generous here in thinking something has been miscommunicated. It seems likely that Reuben was assigned to MOTUC to aggressively cost-reduce the 4H designs and so is doing exactly what is expected of him by Mattel.

I love them personally. Never had them as a kid so arenít too fixated or hung up on the inconsistencies with either the prototypes or vintage releases. I can understand and respect the irritation shown by some, especially those with nostalgic attachments to the characters, but for me they just look really fun and I consider them an exciting inclusion to the line. Hopefully they wonít sell out too quickly and Iíll be able to pick one up without having to pay extortionate prices on the secondary market. Fingers crossed!

That was a cool video. I lol'd at the camerman. Toyguru shows how they transform and you hear (what sounds like) an unimpressed "Mhmm." Too funny. I still think they're cool. I just wish their rock parts weren't so large. Can't wait to see bios for Castaspella and Shokoti!!!

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